New Edition on 28-30 October 2026 / Last seats available
A unique executive education programme in behavioural and decision science.
Run by leading practitioners and academics for real-world impact. Join our three day programme to learn how to effectively create sustainable change and growth in the AI era, with behavioural science and decision science insights.
Developed and managed by
The Proposition
Humans. Organisations. Tech.
Strategy is decided in behaviour. So is learning. Whether a strategy lands, a transformation succeeds, a policy delivers, or an AI initiative actually changes how people work; none of that is decided in the concept. It is decided in behaviour: in the thousands of everyday moments where people choose to act, hesitate, or carry on as before, now with an AI system co-shaping that choice.
Behavioural and decision science understands these moments more precisely than any opinion or gut feeling. But AI changes what there is to understand. It is no longer just a tool people use: it is a party to the interaction, with its own tendencies, blind spots, and logic. Getting this right means holding three things together: how humans behave, how AI itself behaves, how AI can sharpen the study of human behaviour, and - the part every organisation feels first and understands last - how humans and AI actually behave once they share the same tasks, decisions, and the same rooms.
The Applied Behavioural Science Academy offers you all three areas as part of a comprehensive study programme that provides a solid foundation in applied behavioural science, decision science and AI, with a focus on innovation, organisational learning and personal development.
The Facts
Seven Cohorts. Five Years. One Academy.
A unique 3-day programme in behavioural and decision science developed for decision makers, policy experts, and project leaders eager to drive real-world impact in the AI era.
A comprehensive curriculum covering theory and application in private, public, and non-governmental contexts focussing on individuals, systems, and organisations.
An exclusive international cohort limited to max 15 participants, now convening once a year at the world-class executive education location of ETH Villa Hatt in Zurich.
The Curriculum
Designed for decision-makers, leading people in the AI era.
The curriculum is comprehensive yet compact, academically rigorous yet practically oriented. It was developed by leading academics and practitioners with decades of combined experience, covering the latest insights and tools for activating and transforming individuals, systems and organisations.
We take an integrated approach to understanding what people do, why they do it, and how behaviour changes. Across three days, the perspective spans human decisions, human-to-human interaction and human-to-technology interaction. Above all, the Academy creates a unique space for reflection and exchange among participants. It builds the bridge from academia to practice, theory to application, always guided by leading subject matter experts on site.
Day 1
The Individual
How people actually decide and act. The foundations of applied behavioural and decision science: the drivers behind individual choices, the systematic ways judgement departs from the economically rational model, and how nudging and choice architecture, as well as boosting can shape and improve decisions. We also look at where AI now sits inside individual decision-making, as adviser, as default, as nudge, and as an aid for better outcomes.
What you can expect
Welcome & Introduction to the Academy
Introduction to Participant Projects - Your Challenges, Your Ideas, Our Guidance
Foundations of Applied Behavioural Science - The Past, Today, The Future, Core Insights and Methods from Academia for Practitioners
Coffee Break
Foundations of Applied Decision Science - Managerial Judgment and Decision-Making for Practitioners
Lunch Break
Introduction to Choice Architecture and Behavioural Interventions - Designing for Behavioural Change, Ethical Nudging and Boosting in Practice
Foundations of Applied AI - The Development, The Opportunities and The Limitations in Contrast to Human Judgment and Decision-Making
Coffee Break
Project Reflection 1 - Defining and Approaching the Challenge using Scientific Insights and Methods
Guest Speaker 1 - Input by thought-leader onsite, Q&A with all participants (Content exclusive to registered cohort)
Day 2
The System
How environments shape behaviour at scale. From single decisions to the systems that surround them. The theory and tools for designing choice environments, policies and platforms. We look at identifying, creating and testing interventions through experimentation, as well as understanding how digital and AI-driven systems behave and steer behaviour.
What you can expect
Recap and Bridge from Day 1 - From the Individual to the System
Cognition, Innovation and the Obstacles to Change - fMRI evidence on how people do (not) change
Coffee Break
Designing for Individual and Organisational Change - Observation and Intervention Design, Incentives, Norms, Defaults for Practitioners
Project Reflection 2 - Defining and Developing Change Strategies
Lunch Break
Human x AI x Future 1 - Individual and Organisational Goal Setting & Problem-Framing meets LLMs, Agents and Co.
Coffee Break
Human x AI x Future 2 - Individual Expertise & Decision-Making Power meets Fatigue & Interferences from AI
Guest Speaker 2 - Input by thought-leader onsite, Q&A with all participants (Content exclusive to registered cohort)
Day 3
The Organisation
Where individuals and systems meet. Where human and artificial intelligence collaborate (or not). Organisations are where individual behaviour and system design collide: in leadership, teams, culture and change. We bring both levels together, applying behavioural science to strategy, innovation, organisational learning and the adoption of new tools, including AI, in everyday work.
What you can expect
Recap and Bridge from Day 2 - Where Individuals and Systems meet at Organisational Level
AI and Behavioural Science in Organisations 1 - The Strategy and Modelling Case (led by Guest Speaker 3)
Coffee Break
AI and Behavioural Science in Organisations 2 - The Learning, Development and Adoption Case (led by Guest Speaker 4)
Lunch Break
The AI-supported Organisation - Insights from the Lab for Practitioners, Case Study Presentation at the Intersection of Academia and Insurance (led by Guest Speaker 5)
Coffee Break
Project Reflection 3 - Panel Discussion and Strategy Definition, Followed by Participant Presentation
Programme Recap and Outlook - followed by Networking Drinks with the Faculty
The programme is being updated and further adjusted on a rolling basis. Register now to reserve your limited seat and check back for more information soon.
The References
Real experiences. Real opinions.
Our lead faculty bring together applied practice and academic depth. They research, teach and apply behavioural and decision science across private, public and non-governmental organisations. They also research, apply and advocate for the implementation of AI through a behavioural science lens.
The Faculty
Experts you learn from. Practitioners you trust.
Torben Emmerling
Co-Founder & Practice Lead
Managing Partner and Chief Behavioural Scientist of Aeccess Behavioural & Decision Science Consulting (ÆCCESS) the practitioners behind the Academy. He is Chairman of the Global Association of Applied Behavioural Scientists (GAABS), Lecturer at ETH Zurich, HSG and FHNW, and a Harvard Business Review and OECD-published author on behavioural and decision science.
Stefano Brusoni
Co-Founder & Academic Lead
Professor of Technology and Innovation Management at ETH Zurich, leading the TIM Group, and Prorector for Continuing Education of ETH Zurich. His research examines the obstacles to innovation and change at the individual and organisational level, combining experimental and field-based methods. Former Associate Editor of the Strategic Management Journal.
Professor, Lecturer and Director of COLAB within the Technology and Innovation Management Chair at ETH Zurich, and a renowned expert on behavioural and cognitive science for organisational innovation and strategy.
Daniella Laureiro Martinez
Expert Lecturer
Senior Researcher within the TIM Group and Head of the Technology Systems and Strategy (TESS) Lab, and an expert on technological change and its organisational implications as well as behavioural strategy and adaption.
Axel Zeijen
Expert Lecturer
An entrepreneur pushing the boundaries of AI integration and research in online environments.
More details will be announced soon.
Guest Speaker 1
To be announced soon.
A researcher investigating the adoption and integration of artificial intelligence.
More details will be announced soon.
Guest Speaker 2
To be announced soon.
The Location
ETH Villa Hatt, Zurich. A world-class learning facility.
The Academy convenes at the ETH Villa Hatt, a world-class historic guesthouse set on the hillside above Zurich. Its seminar rooms and garden terrace look out across the city, an intimate setting for a cohort of fifteen. Reached by tram and the Rigiblick funicular, the Villa sits above the heart of Zurich. Three days to think, exchange and step back from the everyday.
ETH Villa Hatt
Freudenbergstrasse 112
CH-8044 Zurich, Switzerland
The Package
One decision. Three days covered.
The essentials
Dates: 28-30 October 2026, three full days from 9am to 5pm.
Format: In person, ETH Villa Hatt, Zurich, Switzerland
Language: English, international cohort
Participants: Limited to fifteen participants
Fee: CHF 3'690.- per participant
We are delighted to offer the unique three-day course for an overall fee of CHF 3’690.- covering everything on site, from teaching to materials to meals, so you can focus on the insights, not the logistics. Save your place early, the cohort is limited to fifteen participants only. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis.
Included
Three full days of teaching with our faculty and guest speakers
All preparatory materials and handouts
A dedicated AI support tool for use on site and long after the programme
Breakfast, lunch and refreshments throughout all three days
Networking drinks on site with faculty and your cohort
Certificate of attendance signed by the faculty.
Your place in an international cohort of no more than fifteen per edition
Not included:
Accommodation
Travel arrangements
The Registration
Apply Now. Secure your limited seat today.
The Academy is limited to fifteen seats per edition. Complete the form below to secure your place. Applications are reviewed individually by our faculty, with places allocated to qualified profiles in order of registration. Invoicing is available at personal or company level, simply tell us your preference. Payment is by bank transfer only.
Registration Form:
Notice: Due to the limited number of seats, registrations are considered binding. Cancellations are not possible once registered and approved by our faculty. Your place may be transferred to another person at any time. Payment must be received no later than ten days before the programme begins.